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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22404070">Miss Jackson</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/NervousAliceCurious/pseuds/NervousAliceCurious'>NervousAliceCurious</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>ETNuary [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Escape the Night (Web Series)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>ETNuary, Gen, Search, Survivor Buddies</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-01-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-01-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 11:40:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>532</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22404070</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/NervousAliceCurious/pseuds/NervousAliceCurious</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>MatPat must be a Detective once more, for better or worse, success or fail.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>ETNuary [22]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1588006</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Miss Jackson</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Happy Late MatPat Day!!</p>
<p>Cw: Teeny blood. Slap mentions.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>So.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Hear me out.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Nikita is often late.</p>
<p>-But not <em>this</em> late.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And <em>never</em> on days like these.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She’s always acting tough and her words snap like sharp firecrackers, but underneath that bad girl exterior is a genuinely caring person.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>There’s just no way she’d stand us up without letting us know.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I tried to call her, and all I got was the dial tone.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Sorry guys-“</p>
<p>I burst back into the diner, collecting my bag-</p>
<p>“What happened?” Eva asks.</p>
<p>“Not answering, gonna go check at her place, see you later, sorry again-“</p>
<p>“Don’t worry about it, Mat”, Tyler reassures me.</p>
<p>I shoot him a grateful grin, and disappear.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Okay.</p>
<p>She lives right around here, I believe…</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As far as I know, she’s been living alone.</p>
<p>But you never know.</p>
<p>I just hope I don’t scare anyone when I let myself in the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>She told me where the spare key was.</p>
<p>‘Leave it under the dragon, because, of course, that’s who I am’.</p>
<p>And there it is.</p>
<p>Fingers swipe at metal, perfect.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Please tell me you’re doing fine.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Silent.</p>
<p>Doesn’t really fit.</p>
<p>Nikita is passionate fire, all of the time.</p>
<p>Literally.</p>
<p>‘Silent’ is not something that should exist here.</p>
<p>But exist it does.</p>
<p>
  <em>Yeahhh.</em>
</p>
<p>Whatever’s going on, whatever happened to make her miss this…</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It can’t be good.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Not a sign of anyone, anywhere.</p>
<p>I even have to peek in her bedroom-</p>
<p><em>And</em> her bathroom.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nikita? Before you slap me, let me explain-“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>No inflamed replies.</p>
<p>No enraged clawing at my face.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nikita?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I uncover my eyes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Empty…</p>
<p>
  <em>Empty.</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>
    <em>Empty.</em>
  </strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>….This is some horror movie material.</p>
<p>Not like we both didn’t survive one only a few months ago.</p>
<p><br/>Apparently.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nikita-“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I go back down the stairs.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Where are you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I’m looking around, trying to see if there’s anything I missed, some kind of trail or evidence that would lead me right to-</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Now<em> that</em> looks like-</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Small, almost microscopic drips of blood.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>….Worried, I follow them past the marble counter and out the back door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The hinges are chipped.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I poke it, and the whole thing falls into the yard.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nikita?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Run outside…</p>
<p> </p>
<p>No sign.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Nikita, if you’re out here-“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <strong>Yell.</strong>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>More drips.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The grass smells weird.</p>
<p><em>Long</em> coppery.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I follow them past the neighbor’s house, and nearly strain my spinal cord while climbing over their fence.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>What on earth-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I should definitely be calling the police at this point.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I pull out my phone-</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Something stops me.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Not…physically, but-</p>
<p>An odd premonition crackling in my bones.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I head to her home again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I stand there, in her humongous kitchen (although, if you saw Ro’s-)</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The crackling grows stronger.</p>
<p>Stranger-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I walk into her bathroom.</p>
<p>I don’t call out this time.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pull away the shower curtain for another look-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Something is off.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I’m just…not sure what.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hi…yeah, this is MatPat.</p>
<p>I think…I don’t know what I think, but Nikita is gone-“</p>
<p> </p>
<p>SAE.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>My friends.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>On speed dial.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Somebody should show out at least-</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I run my fingers past the walls of the stall.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It shimmers.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>...</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“MatPat!?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Where’d he go!?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“MISS MATPAT!!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>-Not even the slightest reaction.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>What’s that smell?</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“MATPAT!!?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I trail it to an empty bathroom.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>548 Vs. 532 Words.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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